NHL EZ Pick Preview 03/07/19

Nikita Kucherov vs Patrick Kane

Nikita Kucherov has a chance to pass Vincent Lecavalier in the franchise record book on Thursday night. Kucherov owns a league-high 108 points to match the former Tampa Bay captain, who set his record in 2006-07. “It’s amazing,” Lightning teammate Adam Erne told reporters of Kucherov after Tuesday’s 5-2 victory over Winnipeg. “It just happens for him. He’s a real hard worker. You can tell how hard he works in practice on his particular skills, how well he knows his game and what he needs to do.”

Buffalo native Patrick Kane has been held off the scoresheet in each of the last two losses, the first time the league’s second-leading scorer has not recorded a point in back-to-back games since Nov. 21-23. Kane scored two goals in Chicago’s rout of Buffalo last month.

Evgeni Dadonov vs Vladimir Tarasenko

Florida RW Evgenii Dadonov is mired in a five-game point drought as he sits one shy of his second straight season with at least 50.

Vladimir Tarasenko (team-high 27 goals, 56 points), who notched two assists against Anaheim on Wednesday, collected 10 goals and 20 points in the 11 games prior to Schenn’s injury but only three points with his linemate out of action (6 games).

Phil Kessel vs Alexander Radulov

Pittsburgh RW Phil Kessel, who has four assists in his last five games overall, has set up a goal in both encounters with Columbus this season.

Alexander Radulov was left off of the lineup last game against the Rangers because of disciplinary reasons. He showed up late before Tuesday game. Radulov has recorded four points against the Avalanche this season.

Jamie Benn vs Artemi Panarin

Jamie Benn recorded a hat trick on Saturday, but was then blanked from the scoresheet on Tuesday.

Blue Jackets LW Artemi Panarin has recorded 15 points (nine goals, six assists) in 10 career contests versus the Penguins.

Brad Marchand vs Johnny Gaudreau

Brad Marchand continues to pile up points with six in the last four games to increase his team-leading total to 77.

Johnny Gaudreau was kept off the scoresheet Wednesday, ending his four-game assist streak. The 25-year-old left wing, who tops the team with 84 points and shares the lead in goals (30) with Sean Monahan, needs one of each to set career highs.

Mike Hoffman vs Yanni Gourde

Left wing Mike Hoffman leads Florida with 30 goals and is two points from matching his career high of 61 with Ottawa in 2016-17.

Yanni Gourde scored a goal in Tuesday’s win over the Jets.

Tyler Seguin vs Nathan MacKinnon

Stars C Tyler Seguin has recorded two goals and two assists against the Avalanche this season.

Nathan MacKinnon scored his club-best 34th goal in a 4-3 win over Detroit on Tuesday. The 23-year-old scored and set up a goal in the Avalanche’s 3-2 victory over Dallas on Nov. 24 before erupting for a season high-tying four points (one goal, three assists) in a 6-4 triumph against the Stars on Dec. 15.

Sidney Crosby vs Patrice Bergeron

Superstar captain Sidney Crosby powered his team to the pair of wins by recording multi-point performances in each outing this season against Columbus. The two-time Hart Trophy recipient posted his fifth straight multi-point effort by scoring a goal and setting up two others in Tuesday’s 3-2 overtime win versus Florida to boost his total to five goals and eight assists in that stretch.

Center Patrice Bergeron reached 60 points for the seventh time in his career Tuesday with his 23rd goal.

Steven Stamkos vs Evgeni Malkin

Along with teammate Nikita Kucherov, captain Steven Stamkos could also pass Vincent Lecavalier in the franchise record book. Stamkos boasts 382 career goals, one behind Lecavalier for the most in Lightning history.

Evgeni Malkin saw his four-game point streak snap on Tuesday. He’s up to 21 goals and 66 points in 60 games this season. He’s also just four points away from the 1,000th of his career.

Jack Eichel vs Jonathan Toews

Captain Jack Eichel scored twice in the marquee matchup against Connor McDavid and Edmonton on Monday to give him six goals in his last five games and 25 on the season — matching his season high from 2017-18. “I probably haven’t been the most consistent scorer this year,” Eichel said of his recent binge. “I think I’ve probably passed up too many opportunities to shoot the puck at times. Eichel, who has scored at least 24 goals in each of his first four seasons, had a goal in a 7-3 loss to Chicago on Feb. 1.

Jonathan Toews will play on a line Brandon Saad and John Hayden. Head coach Jeremy Colliton is trying to get his team back on track now that their playoff hopes are hanging by a thread. Toews has been really good this year, but he has one goal in his last six games. They need him to take his game to another level if they’re going to make it back to the postseason. The 30-year-old has 29 goals and 67 points in 66 games this season.